


peeking through the window

by sophycroft



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, batfam christmas stocking 2018, mostly fluff but a little hurt/comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-28
Updated: 2018-12-28
Packaged: 2019-09-28 19:58:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17189429
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sophycroft/pseuds/sophycroft
Summary: Vignettes wherein a young Bruce Wayne interacts with his future family.





	peeking through the window

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Aya_kunZeroaddicted](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aya_kunZeroaddicted/gifts).



> Merry Christmas! I love reading time travel and deaging stories, so I wanted to give you some Bruce shenanigans. The reason for tiny!Bruce isn't explained, and these are just little moments with various members of the family.
> 
> I'm not going to mark this as complete because I want to add interactions with Dick, Cass, Duke, and Barbara. I had plans to add Cass at least to this chapter (I had two different ideas) but I'm too tired. I got your favorite characters tho!

“Don't you worry, B! Just hang tight and we'll have you right as rain in no time,” Dick assured.

12-year-old Bruce Wayne raised an eyebrow in an achingly familiar expression that said  _ i’m not convinced _ .

“You make it sound like you deal with this all of the time,” he deadpanned. “I suppose at least my life isn't boring.”

\---

Jim Gordon looked between Damian Wayne and the boy standing next to him with a deep sigh.

“I don't suppose Bruce Wayne's got any more secret love children that’re gonna come out of the woodwork?”

\---

“Just because the old man and I’ve got issues doesn't mean you and I have to!” Stephanie said cheerfully. “So what’d ya think?”

Bruce looked up from his waffles, whipped cream stuck to the end of his nose and chocolate syrup in his eyebrow.

“I think Alfred should never, ever find out about this,” he answered with a wink.

\---

“...and this is Alfred.” Damian held out a cat.

Bruce adopted his best ‘socializing’ face and shook Alfred's paw.

“It's a pleasure to meet you, Alfred.”

He pretended not to see Damian’s little smile.

\---

“So how does this even work? I mean, I look exactly like myself--I mean Bruce Wayne--as a kid, but if people think I'm my own son, won't they think it's strange when I disappear?”

Jason finished chewing and set his chili dog down on his napkin. He considered the boy sitting on the bench next to him.

“Don't worry about it, kid. We'll be able to spin it. I mean, I'm legally dead, and I hang out with the Waynes in public all the time.”

“And no one says anything?”

“Well, I get a lot of people who ask me if anybody's ever told me I look like Jason Todd before.”

Bruce slurped on his milkshake. “What do you say to that?”

“Depends on the mood.” Jason struck a dramatic pose. “‘Bruce Wayne likes to surround himself with people who look like himself. I've suggested he see a shrink.’”

Bruce choked on his shake. Jason grinned.

“One time it was ‘I'm Susan, the new orphan.’”

“You're kidding.”

“I am not. One of the gossip rags ran with it, and Tim framed a copy.”

\---

“Is this the style these days?” Bruce asked, concerned.

Tim stared at him through half-closed eyes.

“I've been awake for three days working on a case and half my blood has been replaced with coffee.” He punctuated the statement by taking a swig from his mug. “I have absolutely no idea what I'm wearing right now.”

Bruce frowned. “Would you like a second pair of eyes? I don't have a lot of experience, but I might see  _ something _ .”

Alfred found the two of them asleep at the Batcomputer a few hours later.

\---

“You mean you're an actual alien? Like little green men from Mars?!” Bruce demanded.

“Well, I'm not green or from Mars, but I am an alien,” Clark Kent answered with a smile.

“That's amazing,” Bruce breathed. “And I didn't mean to sound like I was stereotyping aliens…”

“Don't worry about it. I'm not offended.” He paused. “And besides, our mutual friend Martian Manhunter  _ is _ green…”

Bruce threw up his hands in frustration. “The future is such bull--”

“Master Bruce!”

\---

Bruce leaned on the kitchen counter as Alfred prepared a pot of tea.

“I really made a family of my own, didn't I, Alfred.”

The butler glanced over at his charge, the boy he thought of as a son, younger and more vulnerable than he'd seen him in years. He could see tears welling up in Bruce's eyes.

“Oh, Master Bruce. Yes, you did.”

The tea went cold as Bruce wept in Alfred's arms.

**Author's Note:**

> The bit about the "new orphan" is from this tumblr post: http://justiceleaque.tumblr.com/post/151632830619/i-got-sad-thinking-how-maybe-after-a-big-win-or


End file.
